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Topic: Blue #1 - The make. (Read 2567 times)

My first Blue. Based on Flor Azul in Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking by Gianaclis Caldwell.

2 gallons of farm fresh jersey milk pasteurized 145 / 30 min.1 gallon farm fresh goat milk 145 /30 min.1 gallon skim P/H from the store1/2 t Flora Danica (recipe calls for 1/4 t FD and 1/16 ST 50 which I did not have) The reason I doubled the FD is because the label on the bag calls for 1/4 t per gallon and I have been having slow ph drop in the vat. Experimented. still slow drop in the vat. 1 t liquid animal rennet (or 100 drops if you will) Once again the recipe calls for 1/2 t but I have had batches that did not set if I use less than 1/4 t per gallon. Flocc @ 10 min.1/8 t calf lipase (not in the recipe but sounded good)1 sache pr from mad millie 2 T of my favorite blue cheese diluted in some warm water1/4 t calcium chloride for the 1 gallon of store bought.

Hey Clean Break, how is this make looking these days? I tried one last week, although I used all cow milk-raw, farm fresh. It has been in the cave since Wednesday and I can't see any blue on the outside, which may be as a result of the outside salt application??? Also, I have seen on some stilton threads here that after about 4-5 days they smooth the surface of the form, should we do that for this flor azul too? How long are you planning on aging yours? I would love to see an updated picture, and can't wait to hear how it tastes!!

Hey RayHe / she is coming along fine. Right now I am staring at a campfire and the Utah desert so I can't tell you what is going on on day 11 and I havn't seen her since day 9. She had blue arojnd day 6-7 on the outside and since we were leaving town for two weeks I took a core sample and saw no blue inside. So I poked a bunch of holes put her back in the cave and left her. Oh I did clean most of the blue off with a light brine just before poking. I expect her to have pretty long blue when we return. Did you follow the recipe in Gianaclis's book? I want to wrap it in foil after the blue is developed and stick her in the fridge to age to prevent a rind from developing. Mine knit too tightly while in the mold because the temp was around 80 degrees For quite a while and should have been closer to 70. Can you send me a pic of yours?

This is a picture of mine. I did follow the recipe in Gianaclis' book, but I didn't have the cultures she used, so I used a meso and a Toma ST (a thermo mix). I am on day 6 and still don't see any blue, tomorrow I am going to poke holes. I can't imagine that the p.roqueforti wouldn't take, I am thinking because I salted outside it was forming from the center of the cheese, but now that you say that a core sample showed no blue inside, I am wondering. I have mine at 11 C. is it too cold? That is the temp GC wrote in the recipe...I wanted to wrap mine in foil too, but now am worried about inhibiting the mold growth. Have an awesome time in Utah! ARe you at Arches? Beautiful.-Celine

CelineI am wrapping in foil after blue is fully grown. Not sure what 11 c is and i am on vacation so too lazy to look it up but mine is at 55 f. Mine looks Exactly like yours as far as knitting goes but mine was pretty tight inside i am afraid so hopefully I get some good blue from the holes I poked. They are 1" apart or so and I poked a bunch in the sides as well.

Yes Arches. Much mt biking. What a great place. Done with milkshake gotta go. Scott

The second photo is of Caputos market's cheese cave in Salt lake. Picked up some yummy sheep milk cheese there the other day.

Thanks Schneck,Unfortunately I have not been able to taste anything for a few days thanks to a nasty cold The texture was nice and creamy though.

I was just rummaging around the kitchen and came across some sheets of Nori (dried seaweed) which we use for making sushi. Nice earthy flavor which I think sounds like a good mix with the blue. I think I will soak some sheets of nori in some sort of sweet boozy substance then wrap this cheese in it. I was also thinking of cold smoking for an hour or so, just long enough to add some complexity but not long enough to taste like a full on smoked cheese.

I was just rummaging around the kitchen and came across some sheets of Nori (dried seaweed) which we use for making sushi. Nice earthy flavor which I think sounds like a good mix with the blue. I think I will soak some sheets of nori in some sort of sweet boozy substance then wrap this cheese in it. I was also thinking of cold smoking for an hour or so, just long enough to add some complexity but not long enough to taste like a full on smoked cheese.